Covenanters

A religious group bound together by signing agreements (covenants), especially the National Covenant of 1638, to protect and promote the Protestant Reformation in Scotland in the 17th century.

The movement was associated mostly with Presbyterianism, which put it at odds with the Crown, who preferred Episcopacy.

Ultimately the Covenanters allied with the English in the civil war against Charles I. They disbanded gradually after they were defeated at the Battle of Dunbar by Oliver Cromwell, their previous ally.